Captain/Pro Challenge Kicks Off – Match Report (22 April 2026)

Wednesday 22nd April saw the second round of the Captain/Pro Challenge, with AJ and I taking on a strong pairing in past captain David McLeod and his good friend, Crawford Gray, on the PGA Centenary Course.

Fittingly, in the same week as our DW90 event, where we honour past captains and those who have shaped the club, David stepped back into the competitive spotlight.

David and Crawford took an early lead at the second hole with a steady par, from Mr Gray, as the rest of us struggled to match it.

That advantage held through to the 6th, where both challengers produced excellent tee shots to set up birdie opportunities. David calmly rolled his putt in, putting AJ and me firmly on the back foot as the challengers went two up.

The challengers maintained a lead until the 10th, when AJ holed a lengthy birdie putt to bring things back to all square.

With momentum seemingly shifting after the effort it took to draw level, we hoped to press on. However, the challengers had other ideas, quickly moving back to 2 up with wins at the 12th and 13th in quick succession.

From there, we were forced to dig in, battling to keep the deficit at two over the next few holes.

A moment of real quality arrived at the par-5 16th. After a powerful drive, AJ produced an exceptional second shot that pitched beside the pin and looked destined for an albatross, only to run 18 inches past, leaving a simple tap-in eagle. The gap was reduced to one.

A solid par from Crawford on the next meant the match stood at dormy one.

AJ and I were under pressure, but still feeling we had the opportunity to force a tie.

Then came the decisive moment. From some distance, David struck a superb third into the final par-5, clearing the bunker and running through to around 15 feet for birdie. With us unlikely to better that unless something unexpected happened, the match was conceded.

Congratulations to the challengers, who take a 1–0 lead in the series. Having never been behind in the match, the best team won!

Next up, Keith Stirling and Stewart Miller will look to continue the challengers’ strong start when they tee it up on 29th May.